American Civil Liberties Union

Obviously it will mark an important milestone in the long road of equality and justice when the day finally arrives when gay men and lesbians can serve their country openly and with pride. That gay and lesbian service members are currently forced to live a lie and deny their loved ones and families is a reminder that the struggle for equal rights for all very much continues.

A common point of opposition to repealing the discriminatory and counterproductive “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) policy is that lifting the ban will lower troop morale and weaken unit cohesion. This of course ignores the attitudes of service members themselves. According to a 2006 poll, 73 percent of military personnel are comfortable with lesbians and gays. Further, one in four U.S. troops who served in Afghanistan and Iraq personally knows a member of their unit who is gay.

The New York Times had an editorial in Monday's paper — "They Don't Agree Often" — highlighting the ACLU's support for legislation currently pending in Congress which would establish a national blue-ribbon commission to examine the nation's badly broken criminal justice system and propose solutions.

Earlier this month, President Obama asked the Department of Health and Human Services to order all hospitals that participate in Medicaid and Medicare to allow patients to designate who shall be allowed to visit them and make medical decisions on their behalf. This is one of the most pro-LGBT rights policies so far adopted by the Obama administration. Another important advancement was the decision to explicitly ban employment discrimination in federal jobs based on gender identity. While there have been important and meaningful changes announced since the start of President Obama's administration for the LGBT community, action in Congress has not been nearly to the level that it should.